Lions, Lambs, and In-Betweens
by HopeyMcHope
Summary: During their first year at Hope's Peak, Leon Kuwata approaches Mukuro Ikusaba for advice on how to romance Junko Enoshima. It does not go well. Also featuring some Naekusaba content and a text conversation with Junko. Now COMPLETE!
1. Logically Discontent

Leon Kuwata ambled into the rec room on the second floor and strolled right past the back of the chair where Mukuro Ikasaba was seated, reading her magazine. He paused by the pool table, turning his head back and forth as he lazily eyed the room's options.

He was attempting to act like he had just casually wandered into the area, but his "acting" didn't fool Mukuro. She could tell that Leon came here for a very specific reason. Based on the fact that he was trying to hide the purposefulness of his visit, Mukuro was able to quickly reduce his motivations to a select few options.

Regardless, she kept her eyes on her _Soldier of Fortune_ , a pencil at the ready. She liked to take notes in the margins, circle point of particular interest to her, and even copy-edit the articles sometimes. Kuwata's odd behavior was of no concern to her… unless he came here to-

"Heeeeey, Ikusaba," Leon said faux-casually, moving towards her chair. "How's it hanging?"

 _God DAMN it_ , Mukuro thought. "Kuwata," she said by way of acknowledgement. She didn't bother to look at him.

Without prompting, Leon launched into what sounded like a sales pitch. " I was wondering if you could help me out," he said. "You see, I'd reeeeaaally like Enoshima-chan to-"

"Don't," Mukuro said tersely.

Leon blinked a couple of times. He rapidly glanced around the rec room, making sure there was no way she was speaking to anyone else.

There was no one else there.

"Don't what?" Leon finally asked.

Mukuro sighed and placed her magazine into her lap while gently tossing her pencil onto the coffee table in front of her. She turned her head, locking eyes with Kuwata. "You were going to ask me for advice on how to approach Junko and ask her out," she explained to him. "Ergo, I am giving you my advice."

Leon stared at her in disbelief for a moment.

"Yeah, well, I just figured you two seem pretty tight, so you'd-"

"DON'T," Mukuro repeated. Her voice was even firmer this time, and her eyes never wavered from Leon's.

"Jesus... You don't gotta be such a bitch about it," Leon said. His voice sounded genuinely angry and offended, but his face betrayed how utterly cowed he was by Mukuro's intimidating presence.

Leon reached his hand behind his head, rubbing his hair nervously. He was looking increasingly uncomfortable, a fact which satisfied Mukuro just fine. She continued to stare at him as he broke off from her gaze, shifting his eyeline towards the ceiling.

After a time that felt interminable (but actually lasted about 20 seconds), Mukuro finally ended her stare, picked up her magazine, and resumed reading.

Kuwata seemed to get the message, and he began to head towards the door.

Upon reaching the doorway, he stopped and turned around, looking back at his classmate. She did nothing to acknowledge the fact that hadn't left until he spoke again.

"Tell me this: Are you two a _thing_ , oooorrrrr… "

Mukuro slammed her magazine back onto her lap. This time, she wasn't hiding her irritation. Despite glaring daggers at Leon, she spoke with surprising softness when she told him, "No, Kuwata. We are not 'a thing.'"

Leon gave no indication that he was thrown off by her hostility this time. Perhaps he was just startled before, and he was expecting it this time around. Maybe he was even needling her for some kind of petty revenge. Whatever the reason, he looked completely unperturbed.

He nodded to himself and continued, "It's just… you know, you two are thick as thieves, and it's not like either of you have been dating any guys around here. Between that and how much you seem to hate the idea of me asking Enoshima-chan out, I naturally assumed."

 _Ugh_ , Mukuro thought. _First Maizano, and now Junk gets the '-chan' honorific. Does he do that to every girl he's trying to flirt with?_

He smirked now, leaning against the door frame. "So what's going on with you, then? Do you maybe got yourself an unrequited crush on our Fashionista?"

Mukuro eyes widened. She could feel her blood starting to boil even as she smoothly reached out and retrieved her pencil off of the coffee table. She managed to keep her voice level when she spoke again. "Did you know that there are 37 ways to kill a man with a No. 2 pencil?"

Leon's smirk transformed into a sheepish grin, and he raised his arms in mock surrender. "Yes, _sir_ ," he said, mockingly. "Threat understood, _sir_." He tossed off an exaggerated salute at the end — exactly the sort of uncreative mockery she'd seen countless times before.

Mukuro rolled her eyes so far back into her head that she thought her pupils could practically fall out. Irritating as he was, this one obviously wasn't backing down as easily as she'd hoped.

Even so, every soldier knows that when the primary method of attack fails, you switch to an alternate approach. As such, she prepared to launch a secondary method of attack

Clearing her throat, Mukuro Ikusaba looked Leon Kuwata in the eyes once more. She turned her whole body in the chair, finally facing him completely. Then she tried to widen her eyes slightly so as to shift out of "glare" mode, and she even attempted to soften her voice a little. _Only a little_. It was a new approach, sure, but that doesn't mean she wanted to pull her punches.

"Look," she began, "Junko and I were close long before we got to Hope's Peak."

Leon's brow raised in mild surprise as he folded his arms. "Didn't know that," he admitted.

"In that time," Mukuro continued, "I've dealt with plenty of guys who thought they were good enough for her. Every other man who meets Junko thinks they can handle her, and let me assure you: all of them have failed."

"Failed how, exactly?" Leon inquired, raising one eyebrow.

Mukuro let a tiny smile creep across her lips before she answered with one word — "Spectacularly."

Leon stepped out of the doorway and back into the rec room. With his arms still folded, he leaned against the wall next to the door. "No details, then?"

Momentarily thinking back on the inglorious, bloody history of Junko's would-be suitors, Mukuro chose to employ honesty. "I don't believe your constitution could handle the details."

Leon nodded only once, seemingly satisfied yet unphased. "Even so… comparing me to these other guys?" His broad smile returned as he threw his arms outward. "Come on, now! Who do you think I look like? What do you take me for?"

Mukuro looked him up and down for a few seconds as he held his asinine pose. In a deadpan voice, she answered, "I'd say you most closely resemble a Patchwork Rex rat."

The young man's eyes went wide with shock, his smile fell sharply, and he jerked his head backwards, recoiling. Then, after a couple more seconds of that horrific look, his scowl transformed back into a smile… and he laughed. A long, hearty laugh.

Mukuro studied him with silent befuddlement as he wrapped up his belly laugh with a concluding chuckle, then returned to his earlier grin. "Okay," he told her. "First of all: OUCH. Super-harsh. But secondly, that was actually pretty funny. Didn't know you had it in you."

"Mmm. I'm full of surprises," Mukuro monotoned.

"That's not what I was trying to get at, though," he continued. "I'm saying that I'm a Hope's Peak student, same as her and you. We're all the elite-est of the elite, here! Surely you know that if anyone's gonna be up to Enoshima-chan's standards, it's gonna be someone like me."

"Actually," Mukuro said as she raised an eyebrow, "How DID someone like you wind up at Hope's Peak?"

Leon rolled his eyes like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Uhhh, I'm the Ultimate Baseball Star?"

"According to...?" Mukuro pressed.

"Kizakura-sensei, of course!" Leon said proudly.

 _Ah, the drunkard_ , Mukuro thought. _That explains it._

"Anyway," Mukuro continued, "Could someone from Hope's Peak be up to Junko's standards? I suppose. Possibly. But someone like YOU? Inconceivable."

Leon put his hands on his hips, and his already huge grin seemed to grow even larger. "I don't think that word means what you-"

"PLEASE spare me the pop-culture references," Mukuro said, cutting him off. "I can already feel my grey matter leaking through my ears."

Maintaining the massive smile, Leon shook his head in disbelief. "You're KILLIN' me here, soldier! You're KILLIN' me!"

Mukuro could only assess his glee with utter disbelief. _Holy shit_ , she thought. _Is this moron actually ENJOYING this conversation?_

"Okay, okay," Leon inevitably continued. "So is this your attitude towards everyone who's interested in your little bestie, or do you just have it out for me personally?"

"Nearly everyone," Mukuro conceded. "Although I admit to finding you particularly repugnant."

He narrowed his eyes and finally let his smile fade. "And why's that?" he asked.

 _Fine then_ , Mukuro thought. _If he wants to push the issue, I'll tell him what I think_.

Her voice was low, yet she spoke more strongly and quickly than Leon knew she was capable of as she said, "Because you're utterly disrespectful to anything and anyone in your life. You don't respect your own talents, you don't respect most of your classmates, and you definitely don't respect Junko. You don't give a damn about your baseball skills even though they're the only reason you even got to attend Hope's Peak. Let's not pretend you are invested in Junko's happiness or what she wants. Why do you want to go out with her? Is it because you got to know her and gained respect for her? Is it because you share her dreams and goals? Of course not. It's because you want a piece of arm candy that'll earn you more attention from the public. It's because you want to hook up with someone that's hot. You only care about how YOU look to your peers and the media, you... you fucking narcissist."

Leon's face had turned pale by this point. He felt certain that no one at Hope's Peak had ever heard Mukuro Ikasaba speak this much, and he had somehow managed to unleash her full force.

Furthermore, she wasn't finished. "The worst part of it is that she wasn't even your first choice. Everybody in the school knows you had your eyes on Maizano-san from the second we got here. You're only pursuing Junko now because Maizano-san is off dating… " Mukuro paused to take a breath, finishing quietly with "...because she's off dating Naegi-kun."

Mukuro felt flustered and suddenly, surprisingly exhausted. She turned in her chair to once again face the coffee table in the center of the room, and she picked the _Soldier of Fortune_ up off of her lap.

"Any man would be lucky to even stand next to Junko," she continued without looking at Kuwata. "She deserves the best. You… you don't even _rank_." Her eyes stayed locked straight ahead of her, and her voice got quieter. "You're a lost cause, Kuwata. I have no patience for lost causes."

Mukuro yanked her magazine open roughly, forcing herself to re-focus on its text. Leon Kuwata stayed slumped against the wall of the rec room, looking pale and crestfallen. For a few seconds, it even appeared as though he might cry.

His eyes moved sideways, however, and the color returned to his face gradually. He nodded a little to himself. "So… then… " he said with growing realization, "One more question before I go?"

"Fine," Mukuro muttered.

Leon looked at her askance and asked, "Why do YOU always hang out with Enoshima?"

Mukuro turned her head slightly back towards him. _What the hell is he getting at_? she wondered. She couldn't help but smile as she said sincerely, "Because I think the world of her, naturally."

Leon's mouth became a thin line. He stuffed his hands in his pockets. "I figured," he said.

She shook her head in response, furrowing her brow. "And just what do you-"

"Outta everyone here, Enoshima is only close with you, " he said, cutting her off. "And you? You clearly worship her and dive at her feet." He smiled sadly, shrugging. "That says it right there, eh? And you call ME the narcissist?"

Mukuro felt her upper lip starting to curl in anger, but she managed to hold it back. "Fuck off," she muttered quietly, turning her face back towards her magazine.

Leon turned towards the doorway of the rec room and began to obediently head out. "Fuckin' off now boss," he replied.

However, he stopped in the doorway once more. "Last word?" he asked. He didn't bother to look back. "Not a question this time."

"What," Mukuro answered. It wasn't a question. She, too, did not look at him when she spoke.

Leon Kuwata paused before he spoke. "If you hate lost causes so much? Lose that torch you're carrying for Naegi."

Mukuro felt her face flush. She dared not look at Kuwata, but the magazine in her hands began to shake. _HOW_ , she thought to herself. _HOW could this fool have-  
_

"You don't hide it well," Leon said. The amusement in his voice was evident. "Can't even say the dude's name without choking on it."

Mukuro shut her eyes tightly, dropping the magazine back to her lap once more. _Oh god damn it, he's right_ , she thought. _What would Junko think if she knew? Oh god… does she already know?_

As he finally stepped into the hallway and disappeared, Mukuro heard Leon give her one parting shot from out of sight: "Seeya around, Ikusaba-chan."

Mukuro's eyes jolted open again.

 _Did he just-?_

 _He DID!_

She jumped up from the chair and planted her feet on the floor.

"YOU DON'T GET TO CALL ME THAT!" she screamed after him. "I'M NOT YOUR FUCKING '-CHAN,' YOU…" She stopped, swallowing hard. "You fucking… COCKROACH!"

Slumping back into the chair, Mukuro Ikusaba dropped her magazine to the floor and threw her head backwards, slamming it onto the back cushion.

 _Hate him so much_ , she thought. _Hate. Hate. Hate. Hate._

 _How did I let him get to me like that?  
_

 _I've NEVER exploded like that. At least not since I was a kid._

 _The bastard pushed all the right buttons._

 _At least Junko is gonna LOVE my despair over this._

"Hey, Ikusaba-san?" asked a familiar voice.

Mukuro's eyes bulged out in horror. She didn't truly WANT to avert her eyes from the ceiling, but she still turned her head to confirm...

Yup. Makoto Naegi was peering around the doorway with a quizzical expression on his face.

 _Of course_ , she thought. _As if my night couldn't get any worse_.


	2. Illogically Content

_Of course_ , she thought. _As if my night couldn't get any worse_.

"Uh... h-hi, Naegi-kun," she stammered lamely. She blushed with embarrassment, acutely aware that Makoto might've overheard too much of what Kuwata said.

Makato walked in and sat on the coffee table in order to face Mukuro. "Are you okay?" he asked. His voice was laced with genuine concern.

Murkoro averted his eyes. "Um... how... how much of that did you hear?" she said softly. _  
_

Makato looked down a little. "Heh, well I only heard you screaming about a cockroach and '-chan'' and all that. Plus I saw Kuwata-kun running away like he thought you might seriously murder him."

Internally, Mukuro breathed a sigh of relief. _He didn't hear what set me off — thank god._ "It's tempting," Mukuro admitted.

Makoto chuckled. Presumably, he had mistakenly assumed that she was only joking. His warm smile still radiated as he said, "He's not worth it. But I have to admit... I've never heard you yell like that before. He must've really gotten under your skin."

 _That incredible smile_. Mukuro felt her heart beating faster and her face go hot. She thought her heart might just fly out of her chest. _Get a grip_ , she told herself. _Junko would be DEEPLY disappointed in you_.

The image of a disappointed Junko thought brought her heart sinking back to reality. She finally nodded by way of reply to Makoto.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Makoto asked gently.

Mukuro gently laid her head back to stare at the ceiling, and then she closed her eyes. It was an old trick she used to use when she wanted to speak to Junko without feeling too cowed by her intimidating presence.

Of course, Junko had long since shut that down. After only a few short weeks of Mukuro's new habit, Junko had demanded that she "LOOK at me when I'm fucking talking to you, dumbass." And so they quickly reverted to the relationship of a diva and her loyal servant.

Makoto intimidated Mukuro in much the way that Junko did, albeit for entirely different reasons. _On a battlefield, I'm the dominant force,_ Mukuro thought. _When speaking to idiots like Kuwata, I'm in control. And when speaking to my sister or Naegi-kun... I'm putty. Unbelievable._

"Uh... Mukuro?" whispered Makoto's voice. "Do you hear me?"

 _Oh, right_ , Mukuro thought. She'd gotten lost in her reverie without answering his question.

So as not to startle Makoto after his lengthy wait, she cleared her throat as a way of announcing her intention to speak.

Without opening her eyes, she explained, "Four years ago, I got cornered in a beachhead bunker. There were four enemies with flame units spraying fire through the aperture and two gunners waiting on either side of the back entrance." She licked her lips. "And I'd rather be back there than ever again converse with Leon Kuwata."

Makoto laughed suddenly, shaking his head. Mukuro finally opened her eyes and lifted her head so she could watch him laugh. The sight gave her butterflies in her stomach.

"Well," Makoto said, "Try to look at the bright side: If anybody else heard the end of your conversation with Kuwata-kun, they can never say you're 'emotionless' ever again."

Mukuro shook her head, finding little comfort in that notion. "They'll probably just think I'm a raving bitch," she said.

Makoto leaned forward on the table and reached out, putting his right hand on her left shoulder. Instantly, her pulse raced again — and this time, even thinking of Junko wouldn't calm her nerves. She felt like she was never going to stop the heat emanating from her face.

As he gripped her shoulder gently, Makoto told her, "No one will think you're a bitch, because you're NOT a bitch. You're our friend. You're MY friend, for sure."

Mukuru allowed herself to smile just a tiny bit more now. She lifted her right hand up, showing him the Fenrir tattoo on the back of it. "Counterpoint: I have a literal bitch permanently etched into my flesh." There was a slight, unnatural lilt of levity to her voice. "The evidence speaks for itself."

Makoto's smile expanded into a full open-mouthed grin, and he began to gently laugh. His hand fell from her shoulder, but she continued to smile and even giggled a little right along with him. It felt super-weird to her to laugh with someone like this, but it was a GOOD weird. She didn't even laugh with Junko anymore.

In fact, she wasn't sure she'd ever simply joked and laughed with a friend before.

As his laugh subsided, Makoto looked at her sideways and gave her a lopsided version of his earlier grin. "Isn't Fenrir a male, though?" he prodded.

She shrugged the point off. "She's mythological. I can make him or her into whatever will best inspire me."

Makoto nodded in satisfaction, then met her eyes with his. "You know, Ikusaba-san," he said, "If more of the class got to see this side of-"

"I don't need anybody else," she interrupted quickly, her tone level and firm.

Then she widened her eyes in shock again — but this time, she was shocked at HERSELF. _Oh shit. Oh shit. I can't believe I just said that. What the HELL is coming over me?_

Makoto looked away and blushed. "Ah... well I-I'm glad I get to see it, anyway," he said. He quickly stood up. "I... I really need to get going," he said suddenly. He turned and looked at the door. "Maizono-san is... she's waiting for me upstairs," he explained awkwardly.

Mukuro cast her eyes downward, and her smile faded. "O-of course," she stuttered. "Have a nice time."

Makoto nodded quietly moved towards the door.

"Naegi-kun?" Mukuro suddenly blurted.

Makoto stopped just short of the doorway and pivoted around to face her again. His face was still flush with embarrassment. "Uh, yes?" he asked.

Mukuro turned herself towards him and bowed her head. "I am deeply sorry for my outburst. I a-also apologize if I made things awkward for you." Her voice cracked a little as she continued. "I... I-I hope you will... still speak to me in the future?"

This time, Makoto's smile was full of compassion. "You don't have to be sorry for being yourself," he told her. "And OF COURSE I'll speak to you again. I care about you. That's never going to change."

As she raised her head to see him again, Mukuro couldn't help but smile with both affection and embarrassment. "Th-Thank you," she muttered.

His answer was a simple nod, and then he headed off into the hallway.

A few seconds after he left her sight, Mukuro Ikusaba buried her face in her hands.

 _The verdict is in, and Junko is right_ , she thought. _She's ALWAYS right. I'm fucking useless._ _I've gotten attached to one of our classmates, which is bad enough in light of our plans. But then I damn near scared him away by blurting idiotic feelings without thinking._

 _I'm not just doing the wrong things — I'm doing the wrong things INCORRECTLY!_

 _ _Hardass to some, stammering child to others. I'm a real piece of work.__

 _I'm such GARBAGE._

 _Need to get a grip on myself. Try to salvage this debacle somehow._

 _Junko can help me. Junko always knows what to do.  
_

Nodding to no one but herself, Mukuro reached into her back pocket and pulled out her cell phone.

Navigating to the texting app, she fired off a quick message to check on whether Junko was available.

"MUKURO: Junko, are you there?"

The rapid-fire replies came just as quickly.

"JUNKO: I AM EVERYWHERE

JUNKO: But rn I'm especially in bio lab. Wassup?"

As much as Mukuro loved to see her sister, she often preferred to communicate via text. It was the modern equivalent of her old "lay my head back and close my eyes before speaking" trick — a way for Mukuro to talk to Junko without completely falling apart under the weight of Junko's charismatic presence.

Mukuro paused to consider what she needed to convey first. _I'd better start with the easy stuff_ , she decided.

"MUKURO: I thought you'd like to know that Kuwata came to ask me advice on winning your heart."

From there, the conversation flowed rapidly.

"JUNKO: OMG WTF

JUNKO: PUKE CITY

JUNKO: so did u give him hope or what

MUKURO: No. I shot him down.

JUNKO: i am disappoint

JUNKO: That is Despair101 hobag! give some1 hope so u can crush it later

MUKURO: I apologize. I didn't think he was worth the effort.

JUNKO: u ain't worth my effort either but i still put up w/ur shit

MUKURO: I am truly sorry. Please forgive my shortsightedness."

Mukuro felt her heart sinking lower and lower. This wasn't going the way she had wanted. She had disappointed her sister more than she'd anticipated, and she hadn't even gotten to the REALLY hard topic.

"JUNKO: at least u gave him a tiny despair when u told him to go screw

JUNKO: its something

JUNKO: i guess"

She sighed to herself, a little relieved by the last few texts from Junko. _Maybe I should come clean about Naegi-kun now_ , Mukuro thought. _I think it might provide me with additional relief.  
_

Mukuro closed her eyes and concentrated. She needed to deliver the message exactly right, and that meant she was going to have to _\- sigh_ \- plan it out. She'd never felt that great at planning, but maybe if she tried to think the way Junko would, she could find the right way to tell her how Naegi-kun made her feel.

 _Am I really ready to do this_? she thought. _She'll probably kill him._

The thought made her mouth go dry. She could feel her nerves fraying. Her mind began to argue with itself, struggling over her next move.

 _I can't disappoint her again. She has to know what I've done.  
_

 _But I can't give up Makoto like that. Even if he's not mine, I need him in my life._

 _That's fucking idiotic. I barely know the man. I've only ever needed Junko. All other concerns are tertiary. He's just some guy - no different than countless others I've killed._

 _Why am I so uncertain of this?_

 _If Makoto can see something in me, maybe there are others out there who could. Maybe the world doesn't deserve what Junko is planning for it._

 _You're supposed to help Junko destroy society. You're supposed to kill civilians for her. If you back out now, she'll never forgive you. You will LOSE YOUR SISTER. That is UNACCEPTABLE._

 _Is that the right course for me, though? It's such a waste of my talents._

 _The right course is ALWAYS Junko's course._

Gritting her teeth, Mukuro hung her head. There had to be some other way. Is there a third option?

 _Wait, what was I trying to do again?_ she pondered, suddenly lost. _I was going to tell her the truth, that was it. And I wanted to do it the way..._

A light bulb seemed to switch on in her mind. _Do it the way Junko would do it._

Mukuro had been studying Junko's unique form of "logic" for years. All she really had to do was imitate that, and Junko would be ready to buy in.

Mukuro's mouth fell open a little as she considered the implications. Maybe her chances were low, but... _If I do this right, she won't even mind my feelings for Naegi-kun. She... she might actually love it._

Three minutes of concentration later, Mukuro had formed the mental outline of her sales pitch. All she had to do then was lay it out via text.

"MUKURO: I have a confession to make: I've grown emotionally attached to one of our classmates.

JUNKO: ?!

JUNKO: WHAT THE ACTUAL F

JUNKO: I AM SO VERY VERY DISAPPOINT, MUKS

JUNKO: Every time i think u can't disappoint me more, u prove me wrong

JUNKO: And remember that ain't despair

JUNKO: that's just disappointment

MUKURO: I have felt ashamed for that very reason, but please hear me out. Upon further consideration, I believe this will prove beneficial to both of us.

JUNKO: whatevs bitch. listening i guess"

Mukuro took a deep breath. She was full of anxiety, but also full of anticipation. The next message would determine everything.

She glanced nervously at the door to the rec room. _Please don't let her decide to confront me directly and come down here,_ she thought. She had no idea who she was imploring, but either way... Junko did not appear.

Instead, Mukuro sent off the most important text of her little gambit.

"MUKURO: I realized the benefits when I tried to see my failure as you would. My attachment to this individual will of course give you reason to doubt me. Your suspicions of eminent betrayal will give way to your despair as you realize that such a betrayal would leave you to do all of the work on executing your plan by yourself. Simultaneously, my own guilt in forming this attachment and disappointing you by doing so is already causing me despair in turn, and it will continue to do so. In addition, once this person dies as a result of our plan, I will truly be at the edge of an abyss of despair.

JUNKO: ...

JUNKO: whoa

JUNKO: ok that ain't bad

JUNKO: and here i thought u didn't do 'plans'

JUNKO: so who's the guy or girl?

JUNKO: (it's totes a girl, isn't it? ur such a dyke)"

Mukuro held her breath. She wanted to make Junko happy more than anything, but she was still hoping she could avoid selling Naegi out.

After a minute of additional concentration and "Junko logic," Mukuro had formulated the best possible answer.

"MUKURO: Following from what I said previously, I don't think it's wise for me to tell you who it is. I feel that your ignorance of the person's identity will increase your paranoia that you'll lose your only ally in your grand plan. Even better, the uncertainty surrounding the when and where of his/her final fate will make the sudden shock of his/her inevitable death even more despair-inducing for me."

She smiled to herself after re-reading her own text. Pretty good pitch, she felt. Honestly, she was even starting to believe she WASN'T just protecting Naegi from her sister.

New messages appeared on her screen.

"JUNKO: HO-LEEE SHIT SIS

JUNKO: Sometimes u actually remind me why u r my sis

JUNKO: This is EPIC and I am NOT disappoint

JUNKO: im already feeling the sick glimmers of hope still inside me gettin crushed thx to this

JUNKO: hell yeah!"

The endorphin rush from Junko's praise shot through Mukuro's mind like a bullet of joy. _She even called me her sis_ , she thought. _She's been so careful to never admit I'm her sister within earshot of anyone else or on any kind of electronic record like e-mail, and she just did it anyway!_

"JUNKO: Wait, i got more

JUNKO: If i wind up having enough doubts on ur loyalties that i wind up killing u becuz i cant trust u anymore...

JUNKO: that'd be so FUCKING despair inducing for both of us"

Mukuro smiled warmly at the phone. Not only had her idea worked as she hoped, Junko was running even farther with it.

"MUKURO: That's as clever as I'd expect from you. I truly hope Leon Kuwata will die before you attempt anything against me, however. Kinda want to see that one go out. I love you, sister."

Mukuro finally felt like the whole night wasn't ruined. She could still salvage her evening, because she had made Junko rapturous with despair, and she'd even prolonged Makoto Naegi's life to do it.

One last text notification arrived:

"JUNKO: i no u do bitch but don't call me that. SPOILER WARNING"

Mukuro Ikusaba laughed quietly and continued to smile.

Everything was going to be okay.

Maybe Mukuro couldn't please everyone she wished to please. She wasn't even sure how to please herself most of the time, nor whether she should care to try. But Junko was always her first priority, and Junko was happy. Naegi-kun was her second priority, and he was likely to remain in her life for many months to come.

Taken together, those two things were enough for Mukuro to feel reasonably content.

For now.

 **Thank you for reading. This was my first Danganronpa fic, and I hope somebody out there enjoyed it.**

 **If you did, please let me know. I'd love to do more with this universe (and maybe even more with Mukuro Ikusaba?) if there's any interest.**


End file.
